Nets-Heat Preview

By ALAN FERGUSONPosted Mar 28 2016 1:40AM

With a motivated Hassan Whiteside performing at his best, the Miami Heat opened an advantageous stretch in their schedule with a much-needed victory.

The Heat will try to give themselves another boost in two hotly contested races by topping the visiting Brooklyn Nets on Monday night.

Whiteside matched a career high with 26 points on 10-of-15 shooting, pulled down 12 rebounds and blocked five shots in a 108-97 victory against Orlando on Friday. Miami's super sub is averaging 18.0 points and 13.7 rebounds while shooting 60.5 percent in his last 18 games.

"I think about the days I sat out of the league and everybody said I couldn't do this, I couldn't play here," he said. "It was just a journey just to get here."

The win helped keep the Heat (42-30) within one game of Atlanta for the Southeast Division lead and one-half game back of Boston for home-court advantage in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Miami is also one-half game ahead of Charlotte in both races.

Miami appears to have a good chance to make a push with three more matchups against teams well out of playoff contention. The Heat visit the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento later this week as part of a three-game Western trip.

Brooklyn, though, has beaten a pair of playoff-contending teams in its last two games, including East-leading Cleveland 104-95 on Thursday. The Nets then rallied from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter for a 120-110 victory against Indiana on Saturday.

"I think we have made a lot of strides the past couple of weeks," said center Brook Lopez, who is averaging 24.7 points in his last three games. "We've got guys out here that want to work, want to play. They realize the chance we have these last two weeks to get better and make our team better."

Brooklyn (21-51) has lost five straight on the road and dropped two of three overall against the Heat this season. The Nets, however, ended a seven-game skid against Miami - including the playoffs - with a 111-105 victory in Florida on Dec. 28.

Wayne Ellington matched a career high with seven 3-pointers while scoring 26 points, and Lopez also provided 26 in Brooklyn's end to a five-game losing streak in South Beach, including the postseason.

The Heat have won eight of 10 at home heading into this matchup.

"No game is guaranteed. We know we have to come out here and still play Miami Heat basketball," Whiteside said. "We're not looking at the team we're facing. We're playing by our standard."

Whiteside has totaled 38 points on 14-of-20 shooting in two games against the Nets this season. He sat out a 102-98 victory in Brooklyn on Jan. 26 because of a strained left hip.

Dwyane Wade is averaging 26.3 points while connecting at 62.0 percent in this season's series, his highest scoring mark and best shooting accuracy versus any East opponent.

Copyright 2016 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Wade gets 30, Heat pull away from Nets 110-99

By TIM REYNOLDSPosted Mar 28 2016 10:53PM

MIAMI (AP) Dwyane Wade found out before the game he would be without his point guard, then was worried in the first quarter about the pain shooting through his left hand and wrist.

Neither situation slowed him down - and the Brooklyn Nets never do.

Wade scored 30 points on 14-for-19 shooting, Hassan Whiteside added a career-high 27 points off the bench and the Miami Heat clamped down defensively in the second half to beat the Nets 110-99 on Monday night.

"We all had to breathe collectively today, without our point guard, without somebody who puts pressure around the rim and attacks," said Wade, who jammed his wrist early but had no ill effects the rest of the way. "I took it upon myself to be that one to attack tonight."

That's usually the case when he faces the Nets. In his last seven games against Brooklyn, Wade is averaging 27.1 points. He's never scored fewer than 20 against Brooklyn in a regular-season game; the then-New Jersey Nets held him to 13 in what was a 30-point Heat win in March 2012, a game Wade left early with an injury.

Josh Richardson scored 16 points, starting at point guard in place of the ill Goran Dragic, and Justise Winslow added 13 for Miami. The Heat allowed Brooklyn to shoot 61 percent in the first half, then held the Nets to 46 percent after intermission to ensure that Joe Johnson's first game against his former team would be a winning one.

"In the second half, you could see our intensity level, physicality, aggressiveness defensively was much, much better," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "That's hopefully something we can build on."

Brook Lopez scored 26 points for Brooklyn, which had its streak of seven straight games with 100 or more points - the team's longest in two years - come to an end. Thaddeus Young made his first 10 shots and scored 20 for the Nets, who got 14 from Sean Kilpatrick.

"It was tough once D-Wade got going," Lopez said. "We had to focus a lot on him. He definitely controlled the game, controlled the tempo. Obviously, he's integral to what they do. He made a lot of tough baskets, vintage D-Wade stuff."

TIP-INS

Nets: Brooklyn's two-game winning streak was snapped. The Nets haven't had a three-game streak yet this season. ... Young's best game without a miss in his NBA career remains a 6-for-6 effort for Philadelphia against Milwaukee on Jan. 27. 2010. ... Lopez has faced the Heat 21 times; his teams are 3-18 in those games. But he's scored 90 points in his last four against Miami.

Heat: Miami has won the season series with the Nets seven times in the last eight seasons. The Heat went 3-1 against Brooklyn this season. ... Rapper and Heat fan Flo Rida performed a concert for fans immediately following the game, on a new plaza on the arena's east side. ... Chris Bosh, who has now missed 20 games since a blood clot was detected in his leg and prompted him to resume a regimen of taking blood thinners, was on the Heat bench.

JOHNSON'S WINS

Johnson shot just 1 for 8 and finished with two points and seven assists. He was bought out by the Nets last month and signed with Miami after clearing waivers, helping the Heat playoff push since. The Heat are 11-4 since Johnson signed with Miami; Brooklyn was 15-42 with him in the lineup this season. "I just wanted to go somewhere to have a chance with a contender and do what was best for me and my family," Johnson said.

LARKIN RETURNS

It's still a big deal for Nets point guard Shane Larkin to return to Miami, after being a college star for the Miami Hurricanes. Larkin has been on three teams in his three NBA seasons, and could choose to be a free agent again this summer. He's started each of Brooklyn's last three games. "He obviously keeps our pace up. His speed and quickness in the open court has been a very good lift for us since he was starting," Brown said.

UP NEXT

Nets: Visit Orlando on Tuesday.

Heat: Visit the L.A. Lakers on Wednesday

Copyright 2016 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited